I was born in Atlanta, GA, moved to upstate New York, and ultimately moved to Tucson, AZ when I was nine years old. It was the middle of August when my family arrived in the Sonoran Desert, and I thought I could not possibly survive this dry heat. However, after years here, you cannot take me away… permanently. I am the product of both parents being teachers – my mother a Middle School science teacher and my father a University professor. I followed the science path, with research experience in Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of Arizona College of Medicine, and at the same time earning BA and MA degrees in Forensic Anthropology. I applied the Forensic studies to the “real world” working human identification casework for law enforcement and Offices of the Medical Examiner, and as a Forensic Anthropologist for the United States Central Identification Laboratory, working to investigate, recover, and identify the remains of our Missing-In-Action/Killed-In-Action service members from all conflicts so that they may come home and their families may have answers, closure, and peace.

Wearing other hats, I have been a student and instructor of Kodokan Judo – trained by the Rendokan Dojo – for 40 years. My wife and three sons are also practicing Judoka, now all of us members of the Tucson Dojo. I am an alumnus of the Tucson Arizona Boys Chorus, one of the oldest and finest institutions in the Tucson community, and my boys have followed me in this, gaining musicianship, leadership, and friendship while performing professionally on both international and domestic tours.

The sense of discipline and service to others I have followed has ultimately led me to Higher Ground, and I hope to add whatever personal, professional, educational, and social skills I may have gained through my experiences and pass them along to our next generation, encouraging them to go beyond what they think they can do.